Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ The Golden Dance ❯ 2: Bitter Streets ( Chapter 2 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: tsutsuji 
How does the arrival of Priest Seth and Thief Bakura from the past affect modern Seto and Bakura? They don't know what hit them!
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Adventure / Romance | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 01.06.2005 | Updated On: 10.27.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 706 | Status: Completed
How does the arrival of Priest Seth and Thief Bakura from the past affect modern Seto and Bakura? They don't know what hit them!
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Adventure / Romance | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 01.06.2005 | Updated On: 10.27.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 706 | Status: Completed
Title: The Golden Dance chapter 2
Author: Tsutsuji
Fandom: Yugioh!
Type: Slash/yaoi romance adventure
Pairings: Seto/Jou, Thief Bakura/Ryou, Priest Seth/Jou, Priest Seth/Thief King Bakura. Implied Yami Bakura/Ryou.
Rating: NC17 in later chapters.
Warnings: WIP. AU version of Ancient Egypt story.
Spoilers: Spoilers for Ancient Egypt Arc, even though this will be contain an AU version of it.
Oh, I've been sad
And have walked bitter streets alone
And come morning
There's a good wind to blow me home...
--- Steven Winwood, The Finer Things
Chapter 2. Bitter Streets
When the clap of thunder shook the mansion, Seto Kaiba thought he'd finally lost his mind for sure. He felt himself falling, the room spinning around his head. The cards in his hand faded behind the black spots in his eyes.
It was only a simple duel with regular cards, he thought wildly. Even if Mokuba had just wiped out half his life points, there was no reason to feel like he was dying. His last thought before he blacked out was of Jonouchi. But that was hardly surprising.
Earlier that morning, Kaiba had finally run out of excuses for putting off his planned trip to America. At breakfast, Mokuba had asked, "When are we leaving?" just as he had every morning for the past week. Disgruntled, Kaiba snapped at him.
"When circumstances permit, and no sooner! Don't ask me again, I'll let you know when it's time!"
He felt a rare pang of remorse as Mokuba got up and left the table with a pout. "Since when do you wait on circumstances?" he muttered, just loud enough for Seto to hear.
He had to admit, Mokuba was right. He'd always made his own circumstances, just like he'd always been in control of his own destiny. Otherwise, it was like waiting on luck.
Luck. There was no such thing as luck, or fate. Life was all about decisions, choices. Making your own destiny. That was all.
So he'd been telling himself every time he replayed his final Battle City duel, in his mind or on the computer. But then he had to remind himself that it was his choice, his decision, to remain here in Domino a month after the end of the tournament, instead of going to America as he'd planned. It was his choice to relive that last duel over and over again.
Every night he went to bed with a firm resolve to get up the next morning, pack, and leave. Every morning he got up, turned on the computer for what was supposed to be a quick glance at the news and weather (hot again), and found himself three, four, five hours later, replaying the same duel. This morning had been no different.
He was beginning to drive himself crazy.
The fact that he'd snapped at Mokuba proved that. His little brother was used to him being obsessed with work, but clearly he could sense that there was something else going on here.
With a sigh, and a great effort of will, he had dragged his thoughts and eyes away from the replay on the screen and turned off the program, then went to find Mokuba.
The youngster was sitting in his game room, but none of the many electronic games were active. Instead, he was hunched over a table spread with Duel Monsters cards. His long black hair curtained his face, and only when Kaiba knelt right in front of him could he see the gloomy stare on his younger brother's face.
"Mokuba...." he began, then hesitated. His little brother didn't look up, and Kaiba found it uncomfortable speaking to his hunched shoulders. "Mokuba, the plans for this trip are getting on my nerves. It's complicated. And this damn weather, it's too hot to think clearly."
It wasn't like him to make excuses, and they sounded weak. Mokuba turned and looked at him skeptically, saying nothing. Uncomfortable under that familiar gaze, Kaiba glanced down at the cards on the table instead.
"What's this? You've been building your deck, I see." He spotted a couple of new, powerful cards, an impressive combo. "I didn't know you had those cards. Good choices."
Mokuba shrugged, and silently scooped the cards back into a neat pile.
"Mokuba.... would you like to go for a walk? We haven't been to the park in a long time."
That brought a more hopeful look to his brother's face, but the sulk wasn't over yet.
"It's too hot."
"You're right, I forgot," Kaiba said honestly. He glanced out the tall window. The sky seemed silvery-bright, and he could see heat waves rippling the air above the pavement outside. Even inside the air-conditioned mansion, the atmosphere was close and still and seemed charged with a nervous energy.
"Well, then, what about trying out your new deck? Do you think you can beat me with it?"
Mokuba's jaw almost hit the floor. Then his eyes lit up like roman candles.
"I don't have my duel disc here. But we could play the old way," he added hopefully.
Kaiba had to hold back a smile. He knew what Mokuba was thinking: he was afraid that in the time it took to go and get their duel discs, Kaiba would change his mind and go back to work.
He'd become accustomed to playing with either the duel disc or a computer simulation. The temptation was strong to go and get the technological toys, but he decided not to give in to it. He'd wasted enough time already on reliving that stupid duel electronically. It was time to get over it and get on with his life.
Either that...or face the fact that he was unable to stop thinking about Jonouchi Katsuya. And he wasn't quite ready to do that. Not yet.
An old-fashioned card duel with his little brother might be just the thing to drag his mind off his obsession.
"I can beat you just as well with or without a duel disc," he said to Mokuba. "I'll even do it with a deck from your own card collection, if you're willing to risk it." Mokuba's case of cards lay open nearby, and even at a glance Kaiba's quick mind could see a handful of cards he could use to his advantage against Mokuba's new ones.
"All right!" Mokuba laughed. "You're on, Big Brother!"
He soon discovered that Mokuba's skill had improved dramatically since the last time they'd played. He was pleased to see that Mokuba stuck with his well-planned strategy in spite of Kaiba's efforts to derail him, especially since Seto's game was clearly confusing him. No wonder: aside from a few combinations, Seto had chosen his cards from Mokuba's collection nearly at random, and was playing cards no one had ever seen Seto Kaiba use before. When he blew away half of Mokuba's whole strategy with Graceful Dice, his little brother gaped in surprise.
"Are you okay, Seto?" he asked doubtfully.
Seto laughed. "I'm fine. You aren't going to let a little setback like that make you give up, are you?"
Mokuba looked at his devastated field and sighed. He made a mock motion of clutching his chest, as if this was a virtual game and he'd actually felt the loss of life points.
"I'm wounded! But I'm not dead yet!" His expression changed to one of triumph as he drew his next card. "Aha! Even your luck isn't enough to beat my backup strategy!" he cried as he placed the card in play. Then he flipped another card. To Seto's combined dismay and delight, his move reversed the entire play, and blew away more than half of Seto's life points at the same time.
Seto felt a wave of relief. He had been right - you could never rely on luck to win a duel, or for anything else in life. When would that mutt Jonouchi learn that!
The thought of Jonouchi caught him in the gut, and he winced. When would he stop thinking about that last damn duel? And why did it make his pulse race and his skin grow flushed and chilled every time he thought of it?
And why, he suddenly wondered, as thunder boomed unexpectedly outside, why did his lungs suddenly hurt like this, as if there was not enough air in the room to breath? He gasped, clutching his chest for real, as it felt like a fist had clenched around his heart. There was a pounding in his head, or was it another crack of thunder outside? Mokuba's face, at first amused and then alarmed, swam before him. Dark spots filled his vision and he felt himself falling.
He came to a moment later - it seemed only a moment, he couldn't tell. He was lying on the floor, a pillow under his head, and Mokuba knelt beside him, talking frantically into his cell phone. It was difficult to think through the rushing, pounding sound in his head, but he heard Yugi's name, and that brought him up with a start.
"Mokuba!" he said sharply. At least, it was supposed to be sharp; it came out more like an old man's wheeze. "What do you think you're doing?"
Mokuba looked up at him, at once startled, relieved, and guilty. "I already called the medics, they're on their way. But you were saying something, it sounded - well, it sounded like Egyptian, like the chant we heard at Battle City, so I thought I ought to call Yugi, and...."
"Leave him out of it!" he snapped. "I'm feeling better. Just a dizzy spell from the heat," he added. He pushed himself up onto his elbows, even though the room spun crazily as he moved. "Tell Yugi to mind his own business. I'm fine."
"Okay. Sorry," Mokuba said sheepishly, and spoke quickly into the phone again.
Sweat was pouring off him, and he felt weak as a newborn kitten, but he pushed himself up to sit on the floor, leaning back against the chair in which he'd been sitting. He tried not to pant for breath too obviously. He could tell by Mokuba's concerned expression that he looked at least as bad as he really felt, but he was determined to overcome this weakness. Especially since there was no reason for it.
Mokuba put a glass of water in his hand and he drank it gratefully. Plain water had never tasted so sweet. It reminded him of something, of cool rivers at twilight, and sand still warm from the day's heat... and Jonouchi's smiling face, as they shared the moment of peace....
"What am I thinking?" he muttered, setting the glass aside with a frown.
He tried to stand, but the black spots returned to his eyes and he sat down heavily on the carpet again. When the medics arrived a few minutes later, he didn't have the strength to pretend he didn't need them. Something was wrong - he only hoped to hell they could figure out what it was and fix it. But he had an uncomfortable feeling they weren't going to be any help.
***
Ryou Bakura woke up suddenly from a nap he never intended to take. That wasn't unusual. But ever since Battle City, the Spirit of the Ring had been considerate enough to at least warn him when he was about to take over, and always left him safe at home rather than letting him come to in a daze in some unfamiliar place.
This morning, he found himself sitting on the steps outside his apartment, in the hot, bright sun, and looking down at a handful of brand new Duel Monsters cards.
They were great cards, perfect for his occult deck. Too bad they were undoubtedly stolen. He sighed and tried to feel displeased. But they were just the latest in what seemed to be a number of little gifts that the spirit had brought home. At least, Ryou liked to think of them as gifts. The other Bakura, as he'd taken to calling the spirit, never acknowledged them as such.
The overheated air crackled. Ryou looked up to see the ghostly form of his other self sitting next to him, regarding him intently. He hid his delight quickly. Although the spirit spoke in his mind often, he rarely "saw" his other self, and he relished these glimpses of his shadowy companion. It was always fascinating to see how the other looked so much like himself and yet so different.
But at the moment, the spirit didn't appear at all happy about something.
"Listen..." he said sharply, the voice in Ryou's head coming like an echo from a waking dream.
"What is it?" he asked. Alarm crept into him at the sense of urgency coming from the spirit.
"Something is happening. Look!"
Ryou followed his gaze to the Ring that hung around his neck. The points were trembling, and it gleamed faintly, adding its own glare to the bright sunlight.
"What's wrong?" Ryou asked again more urgently.
"Some great evil is approaching. It must seek the power of the Millennium Items, or perhaps it is coming for the Pharaoh himself..." he frowned, and Ryou realized he was puzzled and angry. Evidently, although he knew something was wrong, he didn't know what it was. He looked off into the distance, peering into the realm of shadows, Ryou guessed, as if searching for the source of a disturbance that couldn't be seen.
And then he felt it, a wave hitting him, like a shock wave riding on a rumble of thunder. He gasped and doubled over as weakness swept through him.
To his shock, he felt a faint pressure of hands holding his shoulders - and looked up to see his other self looking into his face. Could that be concern? He blinked, and the scowling anger returned to his other self's face.
"Damn," the spirit muttered. "It's draining you. I can feel the very life being drawn from your body..."
"What's doing it?" Ryou gasped. "It feels terrible!"
"I don't know!" The spirit answered angrily, "and I don't know how to stop it, except..."
Ryou felt a strange shift, and then strength flew back into him like warmth and light after the cold. But he looked around frantically for the spirit. He was gone.
There was still a crackling energy in the air, as if another bolt of thunder might hit at any moment, but Ryou looked down to see the Ring had lost its gleam and hung limp and still.
"Oh, no," he whispered.
Then, not realizing he was waiting for it, he heard the Voice in his mind again, though it seemed faint.
//Warn the Pharaoh! Demand his help! I've given it my strength instead of yours, for now. But it is still drawing life from us. I don't know what it seeks, but find Yugi and warn him. Hurry, you fool!//
The Voice faded. Ryou sat still for a moment, straining to hear it again, his heart pounding hollowly in his chest. Then he got up, surprisingly steady on his feet, and ran. The forgotten cards scattered behind him.
***
to be continued...
Author: Tsutsuji
Fandom: Yugioh!
Type: Slash/yaoi romance adventure
Pairings: Seto/Jou, Thief Bakura/Ryou, Priest Seth/Jou, Priest Seth/Thief King Bakura. Implied Yami Bakura/Ryou.
Rating: NC17 in later chapters.
Warnings: WIP. AU version of Ancient Egypt story.
Spoilers: Spoilers for Ancient Egypt Arc, even though this will be contain an AU version of it.
Oh, I've been sad
And have walked bitter streets alone
And come morning
There's a good wind to blow me home...
--- Steven Winwood, The Finer Things
Chapter 2. Bitter Streets
When the clap of thunder shook the mansion, Seto Kaiba thought he'd finally lost his mind for sure. He felt himself falling, the room spinning around his head. The cards in his hand faded behind the black spots in his eyes.
It was only a simple duel with regular cards, he thought wildly. Even if Mokuba had just wiped out half his life points, there was no reason to feel like he was dying. His last thought before he blacked out was of Jonouchi. But that was hardly surprising.
Earlier that morning, Kaiba had finally run out of excuses for putting off his planned trip to America. At breakfast, Mokuba had asked, "When are we leaving?" just as he had every morning for the past week. Disgruntled, Kaiba snapped at him.
"When circumstances permit, and no sooner! Don't ask me again, I'll let you know when it's time!"
He felt a rare pang of remorse as Mokuba got up and left the table with a pout. "Since when do you wait on circumstances?" he muttered, just loud enough for Seto to hear.
He had to admit, Mokuba was right. He'd always made his own circumstances, just like he'd always been in control of his own destiny. Otherwise, it was like waiting on luck.
Luck. There was no such thing as luck, or fate. Life was all about decisions, choices. Making your own destiny. That was all.
So he'd been telling himself every time he replayed his final Battle City duel, in his mind or on the computer. But then he had to remind himself that it was his choice, his decision, to remain here in Domino a month after the end of the tournament, instead of going to America as he'd planned. It was his choice to relive that last duel over and over again.
Every night he went to bed with a firm resolve to get up the next morning, pack, and leave. Every morning he got up, turned on the computer for what was supposed to be a quick glance at the news and weather (hot again), and found himself three, four, five hours later, replaying the same duel. This morning had been no different.
He was beginning to drive himself crazy.
The fact that he'd snapped at Mokuba proved that. His little brother was used to him being obsessed with work, but clearly he could sense that there was something else going on here.
With a sigh, and a great effort of will, he had dragged his thoughts and eyes away from the replay on the screen and turned off the program, then went to find Mokuba.
The youngster was sitting in his game room, but none of the many electronic games were active. Instead, he was hunched over a table spread with Duel Monsters cards. His long black hair curtained his face, and only when Kaiba knelt right in front of him could he see the gloomy stare on his younger brother's face.
"Mokuba...." he began, then hesitated. His little brother didn't look up, and Kaiba found it uncomfortable speaking to his hunched shoulders. "Mokuba, the plans for this trip are getting on my nerves. It's complicated. And this damn weather, it's too hot to think clearly."
It wasn't like him to make excuses, and they sounded weak. Mokuba turned and looked at him skeptically, saying nothing. Uncomfortable under that familiar gaze, Kaiba glanced down at the cards on the table instead.
"What's this? You've been building your deck, I see." He spotted a couple of new, powerful cards, an impressive combo. "I didn't know you had those cards. Good choices."
Mokuba shrugged, and silently scooped the cards back into a neat pile.
"Mokuba.... would you like to go for a walk? We haven't been to the park in a long time."
That brought a more hopeful look to his brother's face, but the sulk wasn't over yet.
"It's too hot."
"You're right, I forgot," Kaiba said honestly. He glanced out the tall window. The sky seemed silvery-bright, and he could see heat waves rippling the air above the pavement outside. Even inside the air-conditioned mansion, the atmosphere was close and still and seemed charged with a nervous energy.
"Well, then, what about trying out your new deck? Do you think you can beat me with it?"
Mokuba's jaw almost hit the floor. Then his eyes lit up like roman candles.
"I don't have my duel disc here. But we could play the old way," he added hopefully.
Kaiba had to hold back a smile. He knew what Mokuba was thinking: he was afraid that in the time it took to go and get their duel discs, Kaiba would change his mind and go back to work.
He'd become accustomed to playing with either the duel disc or a computer simulation. The temptation was strong to go and get the technological toys, but he decided not to give in to it. He'd wasted enough time already on reliving that stupid duel electronically. It was time to get over it and get on with his life.
Either that...or face the fact that he was unable to stop thinking about Jonouchi Katsuya. And he wasn't quite ready to do that. Not yet.
An old-fashioned card duel with his little brother might be just the thing to drag his mind off his obsession.
"I can beat you just as well with or without a duel disc," he said to Mokuba. "I'll even do it with a deck from your own card collection, if you're willing to risk it." Mokuba's case of cards lay open nearby, and even at a glance Kaiba's quick mind could see a handful of cards he could use to his advantage against Mokuba's new ones.
"All right!" Mokuba laughed. "You're on, Big Brother!"
He soon discovered that Mokuba's skill had improved dramatically since the last time they'd played. He was pleased to see that Mokuba stuck with his well-planned strategy in spite of Kaiba's efforts to derail him, especially since Seto's game was clearly confusing him. No wonder: aside from a few combinations, Seto had chosen his cards from Mokuba's collection nearly at random, and was playing cards no one had ever seen Seto Kaiba use before. When he blew away half of Mokuba's whole strategy with Graceful Dice, his little brother gaped in surprise.
"Are you okay, Seto?" he asked doubtfully.
Seto laughed. "I'm fine. You aren't going to let a little setback like that make you give up, are you?"
Mokuba looked at his devastated field and sighed. He made a mock motion of clutching his chest, as if this was a virtual game and he'd actually felt the loss of life points.
"I'm wounded! But I'm not dead yet!" His expression changed to one of triumph as he drew his next card. "Aha! Even your luck isn't enough to beat my backup strategy!" he cried as he placed the card in play. Then he flipped another card. To Seto's combined dismay and delight, his move reversed the entire play, and blew away more than half of Seto's life points at the same time.
Seto felt a wave of relief. He had been right - you could never rely on luck to win a duel, or for anything else in life. When would that mutt Jonouchi learn that!
The thought of Jonouchi caught him in the gut, and he winced. When would he stop thinking about that last damn duel? And why did it make his pulse race and his skin grow flushed and chilled every time he thought of it?
And why, he suddenly wondered, as thunder boomed unexpectedly outside, why did his lungs suddenly hurt like this, as if there was not enough air in the room to breath? He gasped, clutching his chest for real, as it felt like a fist had clenched around his heart. There was a pounding in his head, or was it another crack of thunder outside? Mokuba's face, at first amused and then alarmed, swam before him. Dark spots filled his vision and he felt himself falling.
He came to a moment later - it seemed only a moment, he couldn't tell. He was lying on the floor, a pillow under his head, and Mokuba knelt beside him, talking frantically into his cell phone. It was difficult to think through the rushing, pounding sound in his head, but he heard Yugi's name, and that brought him up with a start.
"Mokuba!" he said sharply. At least, it was supposed to be sharp; it came out more like an old man's wheeze. "What do you think you're doing?"
Mokuba looked up at him, at once startled, relieved, and guilty. "I already called the medics, they're on their way. But you were saying something, it sounded - well, it sounded like Egyptian, like the chant we heard at Battle City, so I thought I ought to call Yugi, and...."
"Leave him out of it!" he snapped. "I'm feeling better. Just a dizzy spell from the heat," he added. He pushed himself up onto his elbows, even though the room spun crazily as he moved. "Tell Yugi to mind his own business. I'm fine."
"Okay. Sorry," Mokuba said sheepishly, and spoke quickly into the phone again.
Sweat was pouring off him, and he felt weak as a newborn kitten, but he pushed himself up to sit on the floor, leaning back against the chair in which he'd been sitting. He tried not to pant for breath too obviously. He could tell by Mokuba's concerned expression that he looked at least as bad as he really felt, but he was determined to overcome this weakness. Especially since there was no reason for it.
Mokuba put a glass of water in his hand and he drank it gratefully. Plain water had never tasted so sweet. It reminded him of something, of cool rivers at twilight, and sand still warm from the day's heat... and Jonouchi's smiling face, as they shared the moment of peace....
"What am I thinking?" he muttered, setting the glass aside with a frown.
He tried to stand, but the black spots returned to his eyes and he sat down heavily on the carpet again. When the medics arrived a few minutes later, he didn't have the strength to pretend he didn't need them. Something was wrong - he only hoped to hell they could figure out what it was and fix it. But he had an uncomfortable feeling they weren't going to be any help.
***
Ryou Bakura woke up suddenly from a nap he never intended to take. That wasn't unusual. But ever since Battle City, the Spirit of the Ring had been considerate enough to at least warn him when he was about to take over, and always left him safe at home rather than letting him come to in a daze in some unfamiliar place.
This morning, he found himself sitting on the steps outside his apartment, in the hot, bright sun, and looking down at a handful of brand new Duel Monsters cards.
They were great cards, perfect for his occult deck. Too bad they were undoubtedly stolen. He sighed and tried to feel displeased. But they were just the latest in what seemed to be a number of little gifts that the spirit had brought home. At least, Ryou liked to think of them as gifts. The other Bakura, as he'd taken to calling the spirit, never acknowledged them as such.
The overheated air crackled. Ryou looked up to see the ghostly form of his other self sitting next to him, regarding him intently. He hid his delight quickly. Although the spirit spoke in his mind often, he rarely "saw" his other self, and he relished these glimpses of his shadowy companion. It was always fascinating to see how the other looked so much like himself and yet so different.
But at the moment, the spirit didn't appear at all happy about something.
"Listen..." he said sharply, the voice in Ryou's head coming like an echo from a waking dream.
"What is it?" he asked. Alarm crept into him at the sense of urgency coming from the spirit.
"Something is happening. Look!"
Ryou followed his gaze to the Ring that hung around his neck. The points were trembling, and it gleamed faintly, adding its own glare to the bright sunlight.
"What's wrong?" Ryou asked again more urgently.
"Some great evil is approaching. It must seek the power of the Millennium Items, or perhaps it is coming for the Pharaoh himself..." he frowned, and Ryou realized he was puzzled and angry. Evidently, although he knew something was wrong, he didn't know what it was. He looked off into the distance, peering into the realm of shadows, Ryou guessed, as if searching for the source of a disturbance that couldn't be seen.
And then he felt it, a wave hitting him, like a shock wave riding on a rumble of thunder. He gasped and doubled over as weakness swept through him.
To his shock, he felt a faint pressure of hands holding his shoulders - and looked up to see his other self looking into his face. Could that be concern? He blinked, and the scowling anger returned to his other self's face.
"Damn," the spirit muttered. "It's draining you. I can feel the very life being drawn from your body..."
"What's doing it?" Ryou gasped. "It feels terrible!"
"I don't know!" The spirit answered angrily, "and I don't know how to stop it, except..."
Ryou felt a strange shift, and then strength flew back into him like warmth and light after the cold. But he looked around frantically for the spirit. He was gone.
There was still a crackling energy in the air, as if another bolt of thunder might hit at any moment, but Ryou looked down to see the Ring had lost its gleam and hung limp and still.
"Oh, no," he whispered.
Then, not realizing he was waiting for it, he heard the Voice in his mind again, though it seemed faint.
//Warn the Pharaoh! Demand his help! I've given it my strength instead of yours, for now. But it is still drawing life from us. I don't know what it seeks, but find Yugi and warn him. Hurry, you fool!//
The Voice faded. Ryou sat still for a moment, straining to hear it again, his heart pounding hollowly in his chest. Then he got up, surprisingly steady on his feet, and ran. The forgotten cards scattered behind him.
***
to be continued...